Paper-making apparatus.



C. H. ATKINS.

PAPER MAKING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION 311.21) mm: 24, 1912.

Patented Dec. 8, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTOR, 6724/166 H. Jar/aka ATTORNEYJ O. H. ATKINS.

PAPER MAKING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 24, 1912.

1 1 20,433. Patented Dec. 8, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

lV/TNESSES: IVVENTOR,

ATTORNEYS crraaziiis-v Ht" AllKINS,; or-srmriewmm Massacauen'mrss rnrnamxme Annmarie;

Spe cificatioii :01 Letters Patent- Patented-Dec. 8,1914.

'To' all whom it mag concern":

Be it known-that I, vCiramias H.ATK1NS, a citizenof the United !StatesofAmerica, residing at Springfield, inthe'county of 5 Hampden'and StateofMassachusetts, have invented newand useful Improvements in PaperMaking 'Apparatuamf which thefollowing 'is' a specification;-

This invention relates to revolying suction rolls-for'paper machines:Itis especially adaptedfor use incylindermachines, but it isnot-limitedto this specific use, since it can-be-used efficientlyon-Fourdrinier machines-and" in many other connections.

The invention generally is} adapted to embody a suction roll, preferablyrotating;

aroundwhich the paper is passed through part of a-revolution togetherwith its carrying medium as felt in a cylinder machine or wire in aFourdrinier-machine.- In'thepas sage of the paper-around the 'roll'for acon siderable arc means for extracting thewaterfrom the paper isprov'ided'and this means is so arranged that it operates one large areaofthe paper instead-'-of'*'a comparatively small area -as=has heretoforebeen the' necessary practice in suction rolls. Applicant preferablymoves the aperand' roll ties involved by providing means where the paperenters on the apparatus and'where the aper leaves the apparatus to-causethe rea y assage of th'e paper in-the manner desir 1- In addition'tortheadvantage ob'-- tainedin'havin the paper pass to and from the rollproper y other advantages are 'ob-' tained by the mean's'mentioned-fasfor instancethe doing away with one'carrying felt. heretofore necessaryin cylindermach'ines;

The object of'applicants inventionis to provide-animprovedapparatus ofthe class,

in the detailedidescription'and annexed].

mentioned which will operate successfully and have a great :capacity'for extracting, v

plication*,-Figure 1 -is a diagrammatioview of acylinder machine showing:=the appara tus as positioned with respect to the other elementsembodied in the complete appara- We necessary for" manufacturing paper.Figu 2 is a partiallongitudinal sectional v1ewof-'- about' halii of theapparatus taken on"line-2-'--2 of-Fig; 3. Fig-'3 "is a sectional view 0nline 33'0f Figs 2.

Referring "to the-drawings, F ig. 1, a a a a4, and a represent tanksin'which the 1 paper is contained. A'' roll I) in each tank picks upth'e'paperstock therein' and transfers a certainamount of it to the-lower face of a carrying felt d; The roll 0 forces the felt at againstthe-face of'the rolls-b, inthe usual 'manner,"said roll-0 beingregulated in the manner indicated The felt d travelsagainst thefaceofieaehroll b'in the series of tanks, as indicated, and when itleaves the last *tank' it "containsh layer-of paper sufiicient inquantity ;to form.- the --paper' desired." Theielt then turns on theroll 0 of" the last *roller 'andipasses through a series of guidingrollers h to the suction roll 'gi- The felt-passesaroundthe-*guide-roller qZ' with? the paper-'next to that-rol1'and;thenpassesaround'the suctionroll orcylinder g;for'a part "of a' rotationthereof having the-felt 35 nextto this roll and then leaves said roller9 and asses to farther guide-roller Z Dur ing t e-passageofthefeltaround the roll 9 a great quantityofwater (in'proportion to the wholequantitycontainedby the paper) is abstractedtherefrom iiiamanner to bedescribed. The feltfid carries the partially dried paper 'tothe ressroll is, where it leaves the paper an starts on its return travel to theulp-cyli'ndersfo'r the described operation'to be repeated." The paper,which is now strong enough'to travel from roll toroll unsupported,passes'to the'roll' p and thento the drying cylinder 0, after which itis treated in, the usual manner;

In the operation of manufacturing paper, as described with this"invention, it is usually only necessaryto abstract the water from'thewet ulp at one main point; that is, at the position of 'the roll g.Iffdesired' lofi however, a series of-such rolls may be used' or thesame may be used together with ap aratus heretofore used. This apparatusas illustratingone-way' iii-which the inventioncaribe carried out willnowbe' specifically described."

The large-'suctionroll is moimte'd' to rotate on the horizontalsupporting pipe to on suitable bearings y. A stuffing box C is providedat each end to prevent communication between the atmosphere and theinterior of the roll except through the perforations in the latter. Thehorizontal supporting pipe u is mounted at each end of the apparatus bythe end frame pieces i To this horizontal supporting pipe to is fasteneda dependent casting a which extends the whole length of the suctionroll, as indicated, and is of a suitable width for a purpose to bedescribed. To the outer edge of this casting a is fastened a diaphragmo, the other edge of which is held by another casting (1. which latteris adapted for a purpose to be discussed. This casting a has twolongitudinal side pieces which bear with a corresponding surfacedirectly against the inner face of the roll g through the entire lengththereof, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3. These side pieces are ofsuflicient width to a little more than cover all the perforations of thesuction roll along two longitudinal strips of said roll.

Referring-to Fig. 3, the guide rollers Z and Z are similarlyconstructed. They rotate on-suitable bearings g which are supported bythe horizontal pipe 1, the latter being held by the two end frame piecesA reviously mentioned as supporting the horizontal pipe u. shapedcasting g rests against the inner face of each guide-roll through theentire length l thereof,-as indicated in Fig. 2. This boxlike structurehas a communication with the pipe at through a conduit 1'" whichslidesin ',a suitable pocket of the pipe 'n, as indicated "in Figs. 2 and 3. pThe only difference between these two guide-rolls is that one has thebox-like structure pressing against the inner face of the guide rollerWhere the outer face thereof is tangent to the suction roll, while theother box-like structure in the other guide-roll presses against theinner face thereof at a point distant from the tangent point. It isnecessary to use the spring s in thev first mentioned case to keep thebox-likev structure pressed against the inner face of the guide-roll Z,while in the second-tease the weight of this box-like structuregives'the proper pressure for the purpose desired.

As previously described, the felt 'carrying the paper enters on the rollZ and passes around said roll to the point of 'tangency with the suctionroll, after .which it followsthe periphery of that roll around thegreater part of its circumference until it reaches the point of tangencyof the guide roller Z where it follows said roll and leaves the same atthe point where the boxlike structure 9 is bearing against the inner'face of said roll. In this travel of the felt with the paper, theapparatus operates as A- long narrow boxfollows: In passing around theroll Z the paper is next to the roll, but as the felt carries the paperto the suction roll g the paper is on the outside ofthe felt and thefelt is next to the roll. In the passage of the paper from the roll Z toa position on the roll y it v is likely to tear or lap oil the roll Z,thus deout of the perforations in the guide-roll only at the point wherethe paper and felt leave that roll to enter on the suction roll. Thispressure forces the paper and the felt away from the carrier roll to thesuction roll in an efficient manner. On the other hand, when the paperand felt have passed around .the suction roll and are about to leave theguide roller Z it is necessary to again force the felt and paper awayfrom that roll in order to prevent the trouble previously mentioned.This is done in a manner similar to that described in connection withroll Z except that the air pressure is applied at a different point. 'Bythe apparatus described it is seen that the felt and v the paper arecarried to and from the sue-- tion roll in a fixed manner which willprevent v any breakage of the paper which would otherwise result frompassing thefelt and. paper over a suction roll from areas of low andhigh pressure.

The specific operation of the suction roll J will now bedescribed.

The horizontal pipe u is connected to a suitable suction producingapparatus and the communication. of this pipe with the; pipe "m, and thetwo horizontal extensionsof the latter (see Fig. 3) communicatewith theinterior of the suction roll 9 thus producing an area oflow pressurewithin that suction roll. of low pressure from being .estroyed by Inorder to prevent the area.

communication with the atmosphere, it is necessary to provide for theperforations between the tangent points of the two guide rollers Z and Zand this is done as follows:-

of the diaphragm 'v and since the under.

The two lower side edges of the casting a1; Y shaped as shown beardirectly againstthe; r

side of diaphragm is exposed to an area of low pressure, the atmosphericpressure will force said diaphragm downwardly thus carrying the castinga downwardly and forcin the edges thereof into firm contact with teinner. face of'the roll 9 with sufii cient pressure to prevent anyleakage' between the area of low pressure in the roll 9 and theatmospheric pressure. The suction in the pipe u .will relieve thispressure of the atmosphere against the diaphragm 'v to some extent,due-to the fact thatthe atmospheric pressure .will force the pipe atacting on itsarea upwardly, but the area of the diaphragm 4) being'largeas compared to pipe m, the pressure of the atmosphere downwardlywill be in excess ofthat tending to force the diaphragm-and casting aupwardly. p .7

' It will be seen' from the description that as-theip'aper passesaroundthe roll 9; on the outside ofthe felt, the water from the paper will .besuckedithrough the felt to the area of low pressure and pass up thepipem:to the'pipe: u and fromthere-out to any suitable point. 'It isfound convenient in building-the apparatus to separate thewater and airleaving-the pipe at and force the air back through the pipes n of theguide rollers for the purpose described, although it is apparent thatthis is a merematter of convenience and not essential to the properworkingof the apparatus.

The rotation of the suction roll as 'well as both guide rollers may beobtained by the passage of the felt and paper which is held suflicientlytight against the rolls to give the required movement thereto. Inpassing a continuous strip of paper over the suction roll it is clearthat out apart of the area of the roll can be use to carry the paper andif the periphery of the roll is .perforated to allow the water from thepaper to pass through to an area of low pressure it is clear that thatarea of the roll not c'arrying paper must be taken care of in a way toprevent trouble or the atmospheric pressure will destroy the area of lowressure.

In addition to the above consi erations in the operation of a deviceembodying applicants invention there is the problem of eading the paperto and from the suction roll. In the machine described only one felt orcarrying medium for the paper is used whereas generally in cylindermachines "it is customary to use two felts with the paper carriedtherebetween. Applicants apparatus renders one felt only necessary forsuch a large amount of water is taken from the paper at one time thatthe paper does not need to travel to and from as -many water extractingdevices as is now customary. The lower outer edge of the casting a asshown defines the area of the roll which is not used to carry paper andthe perforations in the roll together with the casting a allow theatmospheric pressure to bear on the upper side of the diaphragm '2;which carries and thus forces the casting a into its proper bearingfunction. The pi e m is carried by casting a and is provi ed with twohorizontal extensions to each side of said-castingto communicate withthe. area The paper'takes a rather sharp bend when- I ever it leaveseitherroll l or Z and is liable as stated to break or be injured atthese points. The device-shown however forces the paper from the'roll atthe'proper points and thereds therefore no liability to stick. Theapparatusrhasbeen shown with a cylinder machine. 5 :It is clear howeverthat Fourdrinier machines can be fitted with this suction roll for-thepaper carryingmedium of any description can be led around said roll withthe desired results.

The apparatus can be put to. many analogous uses to the ones mentionedsuch as drying cloth *or wherever it is =desired'to cause the rushofairlthrough a'continuous moving'strip ofmaterial.

Applicant has described a specific form ofapparatusr as illustrating oneembodiment of 1115 invention. The invention can be sinbodied -.invarious :other s ecific forms without departing from; the f eaturesthereof 'as defined 'in :the following claims.

WhatI claim, is 2- *1. 111 ---a device of rthe class 'described, 'a

hollow perforated cylinder mounted to rotate, a suction chamber thereinCOIIIIIlllIlleating with an exhausting passa e, means to guideapaper-supporting we to said cylinder to rotate through a certain arc terewith during which time the perforations of the cylinder in thecertain arc are closed by the web, and means to revent the remainingperforations in the cy lnder from establishing communication between thesuction chamber and the atmosphere, said means comprising a frictionallyengaging device to engage and shut off the arc of the cylinder notcovered by the web and inc a uding means whereby said frictionallycomprising a box suitably supported having...

(perforated cylinder mounted to-rofor one side a frictional device toengage the surface of the cylinder forthe arc last mentioned toestablish atmospheric pressure in said box, a diaphragm, one sidesubject to pressure in the suction chamber and the other to atmosphericpressure, supporting said box and tending to force the same intofrictional engagement with the cylinder.

3 in a device of the class described, a hollow, perforated cylindermounted to rotate, a pipe mounted therein with a communicating passageto the interior of the cylinder whereby a space of low pressure can beobtained, an arc-shaped box-like device, means to force said device intofrictional contact with the inner face of the cylinder, as .the latterrevolves, comprising a diaphragm, a support therefor, means to connectthe movable part of the diaphragm and the device, said four last namedelements forming a chamber subject to atmospheric pressure due to thedevice and cylinder, said diaphragm being so mounted that one facethereof is subject to the low pressure space, and the other face to theatmospheric pressure, for the purpose described.

4:. Ina device of the class described, a hollow, perforated. cylindermounted to rotate, means for obtaining a low pressure spacewithin thecylinder causing the air to rush through the perforations to said space,and means space through said perforations while they for preventing airreaching said I phragm supportlng said block to maintain said subject topressure in the box and to pressure within the cylinder, yielding meansto aid frictional engagement. 5. In a device of the class described thecombination of a rotatable roll surrounding a suction chamber,perforations through said roll to the chamber, perforated rotatableguide rolls arranged to guide a continuous web to and from said firstmentioned roll for rotation therewith through a certain arc, a device toprevent the perforations frictional engagement having one face the otherand other 1n maintaining 'Sfi-ld in the roll from communicating with thesuction chamber as the roll rotates through the remaining are of itscircumference, and a device located within each guide-roll operable topress against the inner face of said roll at the point where thecontinuous web leaves the same and adapted to guide a pressure fluidthrough the perforations at that point to aid the web in leaving, allfor the purpose described.

CHARLES H. ATKINS.

Witnesses FRANKLIN G. NEAL, K. I. CLrfMoNs.

